Posted on 08/27/2023 9:37:42 AM PDT by CheshireTheCat
On this date in 1870, a spy of the Franco-Prussian War was shot in Paris.
Barely a month old at this point, the Franco-Prussian War was a fast-unfolding fiasco for the Franco side. For three weeks, French reverses as the Prussians pressed through the frontier had been the talk of the capital.
The action at this moment was the huge Prussian siege of Metz, for whose relief the French emperor Napoleon III — Marx’s original “first as tragedy, then as farce” guy — was even then mobilizing a relief force. Napoleon was ridiculously out in the field, personally “leading” the army; on September 1, his column would be intercepted by the Germans and the resulting Battle of Sedan ended with the emperor’s own capture and the demise of his Second French Empire.
For the moment, however, that empire is still alive in its final hours; Charles Harth must number among the last executions it ever carried out. The London Standard reported the story under an August 27 dateline (we excerpt here from the Milwaukee Daily Sentinel‘s reprint of September 16):....
(Excerpt) Read more at executedtoday.com ...
People forget that Germans waged aggressive war on Europe 3 times in 70 years. It took dividing Germany with Communism for 45 years to buy 80 years of blunting German expansionism.
The Franco-Prussian war was more of a response to French aggression. Nap III thinking he was Nap I!
The Franco-Prussian war was more of a response to French aggression. Nap III thinking he was Nap I!
I generally like these, but this one seemed especially light on details.
Some dates have a number of more interesting selections than others.
Yup
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